Bag-fastener.



F. A. FULLER.

BAG FASTENER.

APPLICATION FiLED NOV. 21, 1914.

hwfifimw mmmed July 23, mm.

. srarus rarnur ornicn FRANZ A. FULLER, 0F NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO 3. E. MERGOTT COMPANY, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION 015 NEW JERSEY.

BAG-FASTENER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July $3, 1918..

. Application filed November 21, 1914.; Serial No. 373,260.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANZ A. FULLER, a citizen. of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bag-Fasteners, of which the following is a specification, refer ence being had therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates to bag fasteners and more particularly to a type thereof applicable to bag frames having pivotally con nected frame members and embodying therein a lift latch adapted to lock said fame members when closed.

Tn bag frames of the character above re ferred to, two hinged frame members formed of channeled metal stock are used, and the bag body is secured to the frame by having the edges thereof inserted in the channel of said members. These edges may be held in the frame members in any desired manner or by any desired or i'vell-known means.

The manner of connecting the bag body to the frame members, makes it highly desirable to keep the channel of said frame members free of obstructions, so as to avoid the necessity for cutting the edges of the bag body or its support to clear such obstructions. This fitting not only causes additional labor in assei'nbling the bag structure but additional tools and appliancesare necessitated thereby.

A bag fastener made in accordance with my invention is so constructed that the lift member or knob is controlled by a coiled spring, the assembling of which spring in the frame structure will automatically tension the spring and apply to the portion thereof connected with the lift member or knob the desired torsional stress necessary to automatically actuate the knob in closing the bag, while affording that side sway incidental to the oscillation of said lift member or knob. While preferably the lift member or knob and itscontrolling spring are carried by a box-like support mounted upon one of the frame members, the dimensions of this spring are such that, if desired, it may be mounted directly withinthe channel of the frame member without projecting into said frame sutliciently to interfere with the insertion of the edges of the bag body within said channel. The use of the box-like structure, however, has certain advantages as compared with the use of the channel of the frame member for containing the spring, in that by reason of the fact that the spring is tensioned by its engagement with the side wall of the box-like support, said support affords ample clearance above the bag frame,

between the top of said frame and the to) of the boylike support, to permit the use of a supplemental lock mechanism to prevent opening of the bag by the actuation of the lift member or knob alone. This supplemental lock mechanism is so constructed that it will not interfere in any way with the actuation of the lift member or knob, and the lift member and its spring mechanism are so constructed that they will not interfere with the operation of the supplemental lock mechanism. By utilizing a box-like support for the fastener means and its appurtonances no obstructions are present in the channel of the frame member and the piercing of the frame member required is not such as to weaken said frame member. Said support also reinforces that portion of the frame adjacent the lift member or knob.

Furthermore, the artistic lines of the frame member are not interfered with by the application of the fastener thereto.

The invention consists primarily in a bag fastener embodying therein a channeled member having an opening therethnough adapted to receive the spring lug of a lift member or knob, a cooperating member provided with a nose or catch, a lift member or knob provided with a spring lug adapted to pass through said opening and extend within said channeled member, and a controlling spring for said lift member or knob comprising a coiled section having one end thereof operatively connected with said spring lug and the other end thereof pro jeoted substantially tangentially of said coil toward the wall of said channeled member whereby the engagement of said end with said wall will tension said spring; and in such other novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and described and more particularly pointed out in the claim hereto a p pended.

Referring to the drawings.

.of the box-like support broken away;

Fi 2 is a vertical section of the box-like support and its appurtenances upon a larger scale;

Fig. 3 is a section on the line of Fig. 1; V

Fig. 4 is a detailed view of the controlling spring; and

Fig. 5 is a vertical section of a portion of a bag-frame showing a modification ofthe invention wherein the controlling spring is located within the channel of one of the frame members.

Likeletters refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the embodiment ofcmy invention shown inthe drawings, the frame members are shown at ((,Z), the main body of said members being I provided with hinge members a a 1) b respectively. These frame members are composed of channeled metal stock. The hinge members a 0.? and Z2 Z2 are pivotally connected at 0 and c.

In the preferred form of the invention, one of the frame members, as (1, ms mounted thereon a box-like support having pendant side flanges cl cl adapted to slip over and engage the sides of the said frame member and be secured thereto in any desired manner as by means of the lugs ee' at the bottom edge of said side flanges. These lugs are adapted to be folded over and upset upon the side walls of the frame a. The ends of the said box-like support project downwardly into engagement with the top of the frame, said ends being provided with lugs f f' adapted to pass through openings in the top of the body portion of the frame and be upset within and upon said frame. This construction is for the purpose of spacing the top of the box-like support away from the top of the frame member and thus provide clearance therebetween, for the spring controlling mechanism of the lift member or knob, and the supplemental locking mechanism if such be used. V r

This box-like support is provided substantially centrally of the top thereof, with an opening as 9 extending therethrough, which opening is adapted to receive the spring lug of the lift member or knob and permit the exposure of said lug within said support.- The lift member Or knob It is of theuSual and well-known construction being provided'with a pendant rim h adapted to operatively engage the cooperating nose or catch uponthe'other frame member 6; and with a 111g 73 adapted to have permanently connected therewith, the controlling spring for tilting said knob so as to causeit toautomatically engage said nose or catch. Preferably this lug is provided with an angular socket therein adapted to receive a similarly formed end of the controlling sprin A box-like supportj similar in configurationand construction to the support for the lift member or knob It is mounted upon the frame member I) and carries a nose or catch h of the usual construction.

The controlling spring for the lift member or knob it comprises a coiled section I having one end section m thereof projected tangentially of the coil so as to operatively engage that side wall of the channel formed by said support which is presented toward the member 6, and the other end thereof as a: projected substantially axially of said coil and flattened to conform to the socket in the lug 2'. this construction it is merely necessary in assembling the device to insert the end section n. in the socket in the spring lug 2i and force the spring coil section 7- within the channel. The engagement of the end at with the side wall thereof will impart sufficient rotative movement thereto to wind the coil of said spring in a manner to develop a torsional stress on the end a which is operatively connected to the said lug 2'. By elongating the end section a of the controlling sprin I not only secure the desired torsional stresses to impart the necessary rotative movement to the lift member or knob, but also impart a direct stress thereon, which will assist in causing said knob to engage the nose or catch it and compensate for the side sway of the lug resulting from its being eccentric to the fulcrum point of the lift member or knob. This controlling spring also serves as the means by which the lift member or knob is retained in its operative relation to its sup port.

When it is desired to use av supplemental lock in connection with the lift latch mechanism, I provide in the box-like sup )ort 7' or the flange (Z intermediate the top of t 1e frame a and the top of the box-like support carried thereby, a keeper opening 0. Rotatably mounted in the other support is a hook 22 having a beveled surface presented toward and adapted to engage the edge of said opening 0. The hook p is provided with an operating handle 9 preferably pivoted thereon. By means of said handle said hook may be rotated so as to disengage it from the edge of said opening which is of a configuration to afford clearance for said hook when its position is reversed and the shoulder, 2 thereon is disengaged from the wall of the support adjacent the opening 0. It will be observed that by this construction both the lift latch mechanism and the supplemental lock are disposed exteriorly of the frame members ab, the raised portion of the supports for the lift member or knob, and the cooperating nose or catch, and the location of the controlling spring for the lift member or knob, affording the necessary clearance to enable the application of the supplemental lock to the bag frame in the manner described.

In the modification ofymy invention shown in Fig. 5, the box-like support is not used, the lug being projected through an opening in the top of the channeled frame member aand the controlling spring therefor being mounted in the channel of said frame. The operative effect of this construction upon the lift knob is identical with that heretofore described, the sole difference being that the spring is located in the channel of the frame member itself and thus presents an obstruction in the channel in said member. By reason of the small dimensions of the controlling spring and its location close to the top of the frame member a, this obstruction is not sufficient to interfere materially with the assembling of the bag body and the frame; but I prefer to use the box like support in order to avoid any obstruction whatever in the frame.

When the bag fastener herein described has been assembled with its cooperating parts of the bag frame, the stresses upon the controlling spring for the lift member or knob will normally tilt said member or knob toward the frame member 6 where it will operatively engage the nose or catch is, the said lift member or knob projecting over the frame member Z) when the bag is closed.

When the supplemental lock is used, the closing of the frame member will cause the beveled end of the hook p to engage the edge of the opening 0 and one or the other of said members will flex sufficiently to permit the passage of said hook through said opening 0. When the book 20 has passed through said opening, the shoulder 19 thereon will operatively engage the side of the box-like support adjacent the opening 0 and prevent the opening of the bag frames until said hook has been turned so that the shoulder will be disengaged from said wall where upon by raising the lift member or knob the frames may be opened.

It is not my intention to limit the inven tion to the precise details of construction shown in the drawings, it being apparent that such may be varied without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent is A bag fastener embodying therein a frame consisting of hinged frame members, a box-like support carried by one of said members and having an opening through the top thereof adapted to receive the spring lug of a lift member or knob, a nose or catch carried by the other frame member, a liftmember or knob provided with a spring lug having an angular spring socket therein adapted to pass through said opening and extend into said support, and a controlling spring for said lift member or knob comprising a coiled section, a straight section extending axially of said coil and having its end angularly formed to have a sliding lit in the spring socket in said lug and a section projected substantially tangentially of said coil toward the side wall of said support whereby the engagement of said wail Will tension said spring.

In witness whereof I hereunto atlix my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses, this 14th day of November,

FRANZ A. FULLER.

lVitnesses FREDK. C. FISCHER, C. A. ALLIsroN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. e." 

